Tehran is likely to increase the range of its ballistic missiles and possibly review its nuclear doctrine Kamal Kharrazi, an adviser to the supreme leader of Iran has stated. The claim comes amid growing tensions with Israel and tit-for-tat missile and airstrikes.
Asked by Lebanon-based pro-Iran broadcaster Al-Mayadeen whether Iran was ready if conflict were to expand after the recent strikes, Kharrazi said Iran was likely to up the range of its ballistic missiles beyond a self-imposed limit of 2,000 km
He said that although Iran has the technical capability to produce nuclear weapons, it is currently held back by a fatwa, or religious decree, issued in the early 2000s by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Ayatollah Khamenei, who has the last say on Tehran’s nuclear programme, banned the development of nuclear weapons in that fatwa.
The Islamic Republic has long denied that it is trying to build nuclear weapons and insists its nuclear work is solely for peaceful purposes.
Iranian officials have said Tehran has no need to increase the range of its ballistic missiles beyond 2,000 km as they could already reach U.S. forces stationed in the region.
Kharrazi said Iran would respond to Israel at a time and in a manner of its choosing in retaliation for Israel’s airstrikes near Tehran and other areas last week that followed an Iranian missile barrage on October 1.
Israeli intelligence suggests Iran is preparing to attack Israel from Iraqi territory in the coming days, possibly before the U.S. presidential election on November 5, according to a Western media outlet that spoke to two unidentified Israeli sources.
The attack is expected to be carried out from Iraq using a large number of drones and ballistic missiles, the report added.
The report said that carrying out the attack through pro-Iran militias in Iraq could be an attempt by Tehran to avoid another Israeli attack against strategic targets in Iran.
Israel and Iran have engaged in a series of tit-for-tat military strikes, part of broader Middle East warfare set off by fighting in Gaza.
On Saturday, Israeli military jets struck missile factories and other sites near Tehran and in western Iran in retaliation for Tehran’s Oct. 1 barrage of more than 200 missiles against Israel.
A spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday Tehran would “use all available tools” to respond to the Israeli strikes.
Team Bharatshakti
(With inputs from Reuters)
